Kyle's gaze remained fixed on the newly appeared option for a long while.
< INCREMENT CARD : Increase Synchronization by 3% >
< Cost : 90,000 Demios >
"...Three percent?"
Kyle slightly frowned.
Even such an absurd amount of Demios only increased synchronization by that much?
For a brief moment, Kyle quietly leaned back against the seat while staring at the glowing screen within his hands.
Honestly...
Up until now, he still hadn't fully understood what synchronization actually was.
The only times he had ever seen synchronization increase were during the birth of Yggdrasil...
And the evolution of the first dragon currently resting peacefully beneath the World Tree.
As if recalling something, Kyle quietly opened their previous status windows once again.
< World Tree : Yggdrasil >
< Synchronization with Asteria : 12% >
< Synchronization Deepened : Primordial Dragon >
< Synchronization with Asteria : 21% >
"...Just what exactly is synchronization supposed to be?"
Kyle muttered quietly.
At first, he had assumed it was simply some kind of hidden requirement system.
But the more he thought about it...
The less sense it made.
As far as Kyle understood, synchronization meant connecting or syncing one thing with another.
And strangely enough...
Every single time synchronization increased, Kyle had felt something difficult to describe.
Almost like an invisible thread connecting him to something far away.
A connection.
A resonance.
Yet no matter how much he tried to understand it...
It always felt as if he still hadn't reached the other end of that thread.
But if his assumption was correct...
Then that would mean he himself was synchronizing with something.
Which only made things even more confusing.
Because both Yggdrasil and the dragon had their own synchronization windows as well.
Then what exactly were those supposed to mean?
The more Kyle thought about it...
The more confused he became.
"...Well."
After several long moments of silence, Kyle suddenly stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"There's only one way to find out."
A small grin slowly appeared on his face.
"...Increase it."
And without hesitating much further—
Kyle immediately bought the Increment Card.
And the moment the purchase was completed...
The Increment Card quietly disappeared from the shop.
For a brief moment...
Nothing happened.
"...That's it?"
Kyle blinked slightly.
But just as he was about to put the device away—
A strange sensation suddenly brushed past him.
A faint sound of waves echoed near his ears.
Kyle immediately frowned before glancing toward the car window.
Outside...
The roads of Varen City continued passing by normally.
Yet the sound still remained.
Soft.
Distant.
Almost unreal.
And for a brief moment...
Kyle could have sworn he smelled the scent of seawater.
Slowly...
Kyle lowered his gaze back toward the screen within his hands once again.
And this time...
The world somehow felt clearer than before.
The distant sounds from earlier had also become far more distinct now.
The sound of waves.
The movement of wind.
The faint rustling of forests.
And before Kyle could even fully process what was happening—
The dragon resting beneath Yggdrasil suddenly opened its eyes before soaring into the skies.
Its enormous body cut across the heavens as silver clouds scattered around it.
Then—
The dragon let out a deep majestic howl that echoed throughout Asteria itself.
And at that exact moment...
Kyle heard it clearly.
Not through the phone.
Not through some kind of speaker.
But as if he himself was truly standing within that world.
Kyle's eyes widened slightly.
Because now...
He finally understood.
The sounds he had been hearing all this time...
Were coming from Asteria itself.
Kyle had experienced something slightly similar once before...
Back when Yggdrasil first appeared.
At that time, he had briefly felt the sensation of passing wind as well.
But compared to now...
That experience felt insignificant.
Back then, Kyle had simply dismissed it as some kind of hallucination.
But now...
Everything felt far too real.
"This is amazing..."
Kyle unconsciously muttered.
Even the air somehow felt different.
Fresh.
Pure.
Almost unreal compared to the polluted atmosphere of the modern city.
Without realizing it, Kyle slowly took a deep breath.
And the moment he did—
A strange sensation quietly enveloped him.
Because the air he was breathing...
Wasn't the air of Earth.
It was the air of Asteria.
The feeling was strangely addicting.
So much so that Kyle gradually became completely immersed within it without even noticing.
The sound of waves.
The movement of forests.
The distant cries echoing throughout the skies of Asteria.
Everything slowly pulled his senses deeper and deeper into that world.
And before Kyle even realized it...
The car had already reached his home.
At some point, he had already entered the apartment as well.
Yet even now...
Kyle still sat quietly on the couch while staring toward the world within his hands.
then check the new notification that has appeared.
< Resonance Deepened >
< Your Perception Of Asteria Has Expanded >
"...My perception, huh?"
Kyle quietly muttered while staring at the notification before him.
If increasing synchronization could already produce effects like this...
Then what exactly would happen if it increased even further?
Honestly, at this point Kyle had already accepted that everything related to Asteria was completely beyond normal human understanding.
So rather than questioning it any further...
Curiosity slowly began taking over instead.
Almost immediately, Kyle opened the shop once again before trying to purchase another Increment Card.
But then—
"...Ah right."
Kyle suddenly remembered something before letting out a small disappointed sigh.
"Most items here are one-time purchases."
Slightly disappointed, Kyle leaned back against the couch once again.
But just as he was about to close the shop section...
Something else suddenly caught his attention.
< BLACK CARP >
< Price : 50,000 Demios >
Kyle slightly narrowed his eyes.
For some reason...
The item immediately reminded him of the golden fish from before.
And without hesitating much further—
Kyle immediately purchased it.
"...Now let's see."
After everything that happened with the first dragon...
Kyle couldn't help but become curious.
When the golden fish evolved, synchronization had increased.
Even the dragon itself had possessed a synchronization panel.
So what exactly would happen this time?